Security
Guide: How to Delete Yourself from the Internet
Anthon Wansland
CMO & Founder
5 min
read
If you’re wondering how to delete yourself from the internet, the reality is this: you can’t remove everything, but you can reduce your exposure.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to take control of your data and protect your identity online.
What’s Actually Out There About You?
Removing your data online is one of the most effective ways to protect your privacy and reduce risk.
Data brokers and people-search sites collect and sell detailed profiles about you, often including your address, phone number, and activity. This makes you an easier target for scams, identity theft, and unwanted exposure. Even old content can resurface and affect things like job opportunities.
By cleaning up your online presence, you regain control, limit who can access your information, and reduce the risk of misuse.
Understand your digital footprint
Your digital footprint is everything tied to you online, social media posts, mentions by others, public records, purchases, and even data collected by apps and websites. Over time, this creates a detailed picture of your life.
Some of this data is public, while other parts are stored behind logins (like banking or healthcare). There’s also a hidden layer where stolen or leaked data can be traded.
> protect your digital footprint: Read our guide
How to Delete Yourself from the Internet – Step by Step
Now that you know why it matters to remove your personal data, here’s how to actually do it:
Map what’s out there: Start by searching your name, email, and phone number. This shows you exactly what others can see, and where to take action.
Clean up your social media: Delete profiles you don’t use. For the rest, lock down your privacy settings so only the right people can access your information.
Reduce app access: Every app collects data. Go through your phone, remove what you don’t use, and limit permissions on the apps you keep.
Close old accounts: Unused accounts on websites and forums are often forgotten, but still store your data. Delete them to reduce your exposure.
Remove yourself from data broker sites: These sites collect and sell your personal information. Opt out where possible, or use tools that handle removal requests for you automatically.
Use your data rights: Laws like GDPR give you the right to request deletion of your data. Use official tools (like Google’s removal requests) to take control of what appears online.
Protect yourself going forward: Use privacy tools like VPNs and be more selective about where you share your data to prevent new exposure.
Make it ongoing: This isn’t a one-time fix. Regularly check what’s out there and remove new data as it appears.
You don’t need to do everything at once, but each step you take makes your data harder to find, track, and misuse.
How to Delete Yourself from Social Media
Social media is often the biggest source of exposed personal data. The key difference to understand:
Deactivation = temporary (your profile is hidden, data is still stored)
Deletion = permanent (your data is removed after a grace period)
Here’s how to do it on each platform:
Deactivate: Settings → Your Facebook Information → Deactivation and Deletion
Delete: Same path, choose Delete account (permanent after ~30 days)
Download data: Settings → Your Facebook Information → Download Your Information
X (formerly Twitter)
Deactivate/Delete: Settings and privacy → Your account → Deactivate your account (deleted after 30 days if you don’t log in)
Download data: Settings and privacy → Your account → Download an archive of your data
Deactivate: Edit Profile → Temporarily disable my account (via browser)
Delete: Settings → Account → Delete account (permanent after ~30 days)
Download data: Settings → Your activity → Download your information
TikTok
Delete: Profile → Menu → Settings and privacy → Account → Deactivate or delete account (30-day grace period)
Download data: Settings and privacy → Account → Download your data
Hibernate: Settings & Privacy → Account preferences → Hibernate account
Delete: Settings & Privacy → Account preferences → Close account
Download data: Settings & Privacy → Data privacy → Get a copy of your data
Snapchat
Delete: Settings → Account Actions → Delete Account (30-day deactivation before permanent deletion)
Download data: Available via My Data in settings or account portal
Also read: How to Protect Yourself and Your Data from Internet Hackers
Request Removal from Google Search Results
A big part of reducing your online exposure is controlling what shows up on Google. You can’t always remove content from the internet entirely, but you can remove it from search results. Here’s how:
Use Google’s removal tool
Search for “Google remove personal information” or go to “Results about you” in your Google account.
You’ll need to submit:
Links (URLs) to the pages showing your data
Screenshots of the information you want removed
Know what you can remove
Google typically accepts requests for sensitive data like:
Phone numbers, email, or home address (especially in doxxing cases)
Financial or medical information
Non-consensual explicit content
Be prepared to wait
Each request is reviewed manually. It can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks before you get a decision.
Understand the limitation
Removing something from Google doesn’t delete it from the internet, it just makes it harder to find.
To fully remove it, you also need to contact the website hosting the content.
Handle images and outdated content
For images: request removal from both Google and the original site
If content is already deleted but still appears in search: use Google’s “Remove outdated content” tool to clear cached results
For a more detailed walkthrough on how to remove your information from Google, read our full guide.
Benefits of Deleting Your Information from the Internet
Reducing your digital footprint has a direct impact on your everyday privacy and security. Let’s walk you through the benefits from deleting yourself from the internet.
Fewer scams and spam: If your contact details aren’t easily available, scammers have a harder time reaching you. Cleaning up data broker sites, old accounts, and social media reduces unwanted calls, emails, and texts.
Lower risk of identity theft: The less information available about you, the harder it is for someone to misuse it – whether that’s taking out loans, impersonating you, or committing fraud in your name.
More privacy in your daily life: Online tracking is everywhere, from companies to cybercriminals. Limiting your data reduces how much others can monitor, profile, or exploit your activity.
More control over your data: Instead of your information being shared and sold without your knowledge, you decide where and how it’s used. That means fewer third parties handling your data, and less risk overall.
To make it clear: The less information available about you online, the less there is to exploit.
Your Right to Be Forgotten
You have the right to ask companies to delete your personal data. This is called the “right to be forgotten” (GDPR in the EU).
What does it mean in practice?
If a company:
No longer needs your data
Collected it without a valid reason
Or you’ve changed your mind and withdrawn consent
You can ask them to delete the information.
Where does this apply?
EU (GDPR): Strong protection for individuals
US (e.g. California – CCPA): Similar rights, but depend on where you live
How to use our right to be forgotten
Find the company that has your data
Contact them (usually via their privacy page)
Ask them to delete your data
Briefly explain why
Save their response
What about Google?
If your name shows up in search results that are outdated or irrelevant, you can request removal via Google’s GDPR tool.
Good to know! – Companies can sometimes say no, if they have a legal reason to keep your data.
Take Control of Your Digital Footprint with Serus
Removing your data from the internet is possible, but it’s not a one-time task. New information gets collected, shared, and resurfaced all the time. That’s where Serus comes in.
Serus helps you identify where your personal data exists, remove it from high-risk sources like data broker sites, and continuously monitor for new exposures. Instead of manually repeating the same process, you get an automated, ongoing approach to protecting your privacy.
FAQ
Can I delete myself from the internet?
You can remove a large portion of your personal data and make the rest much harder to find. By deleting old accounts, opting out of data brokers, and removing search results, you can significantly reduce your online presence.
How do you delete 99.9% of your digital footprint?
You won’t reach 100%, but you can get close by combining several actions: delete unused accounts, clean up social media, opt out of data broker sites, request removals from Google, and limit future data sharing. The key is consistency and ongoing monitoring.
How do I remove my personal information from the internet?
Start by searching what’s publicly available about you. Then:
Delete or secure social media accounts
Close old online accounts
Submit removal requests to data broker sites
Use legal tools like GDPR to request deletion
Remove sensitive results from Google
How much does it cost to remove yourself from the internet?
It can be free, but time-consuming, if you do everything manually. Paid privacy services can automate the process and typically cost a monthly or yearly fee, depending on how much monitoring and removal you need.